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Hypoxia refers to a deprivation of oxygen that can affect the body as a whole (generalised hypoxia) or a tissue (tissue hypoxia). Oxygen is critical for many biological process at the molecular, cellular and tissue levels ¹. Low levels of oxygen have been linked to many pathological situations. Among them heart and brain ischemia-related diseases and cancer progression are particularly linked with perturbed oxygen signalling and metabolism ².

An important and well characterised “master regulator” of the adaptive response to changes in the levels of available oxygen is hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF). Activation of the HIF transcription factor signalling cascade leads to extensive changes in gene expression, which allow cells, tissues and organisms to adapt to reduced oxygenation ³.

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References:

• 1 - Wenger et al. Hypoxia, a Novel Inducer of Acute Phase Gene Expression in a Human Hepatoma Cell Line. J Biol Chem 270 : 27865-27870, 1995
• 2 - Semenza G.L. Oxygen Sensing, Homeostasis, and Disease. N Engl J Med 365 : 537-547, 2011
• 3 - Pugh et al. Regulation of angiogenesis by hypoxia: role of the HIF system. Nature Medicine 9 : 677 – 684, 2003
• 4 - Tian et al. Endothelial PAS domain protein 1 (EPAS1), a transcription factor selectively expressed in endothelial cells. Genes Dev. 1997 Jan 1;11(1):72-82
• 5 - Gu et al. Molecular characterization and chromosomal localization of a third alpha-class hypoxia inducible factor subunit, HIF3alpha. Gene Expr. 1998;7(3):205-13
• 6 - Hara et al. Expression and characterization of hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF)-3alpha in human kidney:suppression of HIF-mediated gene expression by HIF-3alpha.Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2001 Oct 5;287(4):808-13.